Despite never releasing a full-length project as a group, Black Hippy is one of the most revered hip hop brands of the 2010s. The rap supergroup, composed of Compton-based artists Jay Rock, ScHoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, and Kendrick Lamar, was active from 2008 until 2016. The members met and began collaborating after signing to the independent music label Top Dawg Entertainment. There, each of their solo careers would flourish, making most of the members household names in the hip hop community.
Though the four members have never officially announced a breakup, they have not released a joint effort in over six years, leaving many fans to assume that Black Hippy will never drop a debut album. Additionally, Kendrick Lamar’s split from the TDE label in 2022 likely means the quartet will not reunite for any new tracks in the coming years.
ScHoolboy Q
ScHoolboy Q is the artist primarily credited with the formation of Black Hippy. Q has admitted that, as the last of the four to sign with Top Dawg Entertainment, he was intimidated by the roster of top-tier lyricists on the label. Once he began recording sessions with his labelmates, Q quickly determined that their chemistry would flourish in collaborations. He noted that rapping within a group would afford him the luxury of penning only one verse for each track.
In the years since Black Hippy informally disbanded, ScHoolboy Q has released solo albums, including the 2019 effort CrasH Talk. Though the album received positive reviews from fans and critics, hip hop heads noted a mysterious lack of features and inclusions from his Black Hippy peers. Kendrick Lamar features in several minor uncredited appearances on the album. However, other TDE signees, Jay Rock and Ab-Soul, are nowhere to be heard on the record.
Further, ScHoolboy Q has been vocal about his difficulty creating music in the years since Mac Miller’s death. The rapper was incredibly close with Mac, both musically and personally. Q also credits Miller’s passing as a key influence in his decision to get sober in 2019. Outside of music, the rapper has become an avid golfer. Q has appeared in advertisements for TopGolf and participating in the 2022 PGA tour.
Ab-Soul
Ab-Soul appeared alongside ScHoolboy Q on the 2013 XXL Freshman cover. Similar to many TDE artists, Soul’s output has seemingly come to a halt in recent years, with only one project released since 2016. The album, titled Herbert, features a host of features from his TDE label mates, though none of his Black Hippy affiliates are among the credits. Herbert was released in December of 2022. The album serves as one of the rapper’s most revealing and introspective pieces yet.
In 2022, Ab-Soul opened up about his struggle with drugs and mental health, revealing that he had attempted suicide earlier that year. In an interview with Charlamagne Tha God, Soul stated, “I jumped off a freeway overpass, man, it was about 50 feet. I think a car broke my fall. No brain damage. It’s God. That was, ‘Alright bro, now sit down and shut up. Take it all in. Relax. You blessed, man.’”
Luckily, the rapper has assured his fans that he is mentally in a much better place following the event. Ab-Soul performed an NPR Tiny Desk concert in February of 2023, highlighting some of his biggest songs and newly released pieces from his latest album.
Jay Rock
In 2016, Jay Rock experienced a serious motorcycle accident that resulted in a number of broken bones and required extensive surgery. Though he recovered well, the healing process served as a long and arduous journey for the rapper. This incident became the focus of Jay Rock’s most recent solo album, Redemption. Redemption was released in 2018, with several features from Kendrick Lamar but no Black Hippy reunion tracks.
Jay Rock won his first-ever Grammy award in 2019 for the song “King’s Dead,” which featured Kendrick, Future, and James Blake. The track originally appeared on the soundtrack for the film Black Panther, with each of the four Black Hippy artists featured on separate songs. An abridged version of the track, without James Blake and Kendrick, appeared as a rerelease on Rock’s Redemption album.
Additionally, Jay Rock continues to tease an upcoming release titled Eastside Johnny, which is expected to drop in 2024. One of the lead singles for the album, “Blowfly,” was released in October 2023 and features a lively performance from Ab-Soul.
Kendrick Lamar
Kendrick Lamar is the Black Hippy alumnus, which likely requires the least introduction. The multi-platinum-selling rapper has achieved massive critical and commercial success in recent years, including a Pulitzer Prize, 17 Grammy awards, and the highest-grossing headline tour of all time by a rap artist. Kendrick has released two studio albums since the last Black Hippy collaboration, 2017’s Damn and 2022’s Mr. Morale and the Big Steppers.
His latest album marked an end to his contractual obligation with TDE, resulting in the “Humble” rapper departing the label. Kendrick has since founded PGLang alongside Dave Free, which serves as a multimedia and creative communications company. Under the PGLang banner, Lamar has collaborated closely with his cousin, Baby Keem, and signed on to produce a feature film with the team behind South Park. In 2023, Kendrick made waves by appearing on a remix of Beyoncé’s “America Has A Problem.”
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